Something Wicked this Way Comes
by Alistair2410
Summary: Six years after the events at Whispering Rock, Raz and Lili meet up again. But soon it becomes apparent that things are not what they seem, and they're suddenly thrown into one lifethreatening situation after another. Raz&Lili. Chapter 10 is up.
1. The Awaited Reunion

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Psychonauts. Tim Schafer and Double Fine do.

**Rating Explanation: **Rated T because there are things in here that I don't think kids should either read or understand. Suggestive content, coarse language, and minor gore in later chapters, but nothing to the extreme.

* * *

**CHAPTER 1**

The sun filtered in through the thin treeline around the parking lot of Whispering Rock. Everything was caught in the peacefulness of the fresh morning; the air was crisp and pleasantly cool with the coming of winter, and small birds sang their songs joyfully. The peacefulness was punctured suddenly by the creaking of old, wooden wheels as a circus trailer pulled up into the parking lot. It was obviously old and run-down, kept not for its usefulness but for its sentimental value—a reminder of the older days.

He door swung open with a painful squeal, and a teenager stepped out, eyeing his surroundings. _It's been a long time, _he thought.

"Razputin!" his father called, sounding just as cheery as he had 6 years ago after the Meat Circus ordeal had been righted. "Have a good time, son."

Smiling slightly, Raz closed the door behind him. "Don't worry."

The trailer drove off, and the sounds of nature picked up again. _A real father-son moment, _Raz though to himself sarcastically. Not that he wanted his father to make a fuss over them leaving—he was a Psychonaut now, and over the years he had proved to his father that he was capable of watching out for himself.

Considering six years had passed, Raz's fashion hadn't changed very much at all. Instead of his lime green turtleneck, however, he wore a simple lime green shirt and a long scarf tied around his neck of a matching color. He wore the same type of helmet (except bigger to accommodate his growing head), same type of coat, shoes, and black jeans. On his back, the one strap slung over his shoulder and diagonally across his chest, was the old backpack he had worn many years before, during his first year at Whispering Rock. It was almost comically small, but he kept it with him, for reasons even he wasn't sure about.

The only major difference in his appearance was that some people—namely, a teenage girl who had changed little as well—would consider him a great deal more handsome.

Raz sighed, finally snapping out of all his thoughts. Reaching into his small backpack, he pulled out the letter that had appeared on the ground in front of his trailer two weeks before. He read it over one more time.

_Raz,_

_It's been six years, hasn't it? Time is short, so this letter will follow suit. I want to see you again. Meet me at Whispering Rock Psychic Summer Camp. I have something you would probably like to see…_

_Lili_

He folded the paper again, his black gloves rustling softly as the passed over the paper. The style in which it was written was exactly like Lili—short, straightforward, and to the point. And considering how advanced she was in her psychic powers, he didn't wonder how it had appeared right in front of his trailer. _Lili could find a way, _he thought fondly. _But—where is she?_

He looked around, the though just occurring to him. "Standing around here isn't going to do any good," he grumbled.

He entered the main campgrounds, where the lodge sat. He cast a good, long look around, but there was still no sign of Lili. He didn't bother stifling the frustration grunt that escaped his lips. Feeling rather impatient, he unfolded the letter again and concentrated. One hand pressed against his head, his eyes closed tight, he began to use clairvoyance.

It was a quick process that seemed painfully long to Raz. He searched for the connection between the paper and its writer… slowly, trying to understand what she must have felt when she was writing it…nothing. Another frustrated grunt, and he focused on something different… the pen that she had used to write the letter.

Suddenly, Raz was no longer looking through his own eyes. He wasn't exactly looking out of the pen, either; but he could see the area around it. It was jutting out of a small pocket in Lili's plaid shirt. She was sitting on a dock, her feet dangling just above water, with a distracted look on her face.

_Water._

Raz severed the connection quickly and nearly fell over. Despite the years that had passed, the curse on his family had not dissipated, and it probably never would. But despite that, he wanted to see Lili more. And he knew one of the only places in the camp with docks was the beach near the boathouse.

Swallowing his fears, Raz stepped onto the creaking planks that would take him to the Boathouse and Beach. As he made his way down the winding, rickety walkway, one of his hands on the rough wooden rail, he tried to calm himself. He never did get to tell Lili about the curse on his family, and he hoped she would listen to him before something unfortunate happened.

He stepped on the soft, yellow-white sand of the beach and stared out. There, on the dock in front of him, was Lili. She looked a great deal older, but her fashion sense remained the same. The only thing different about her was a small bag she carried slung across her shoulder, resting against her hip. That, and she was much taller—not as tall as Raz, but taller than he expected.

Raz made his way silently up behind her, his footsteps practiced, showing that all the treacherous missions he had gone on and all his circus training had paid off. He was overwhelmed by relief to see her, so much that he almost forgot he was on a rickety, sun-bleached dock above what could most certainly be his death.

He gingerly placed one hand on her shoulder. She turned calmly, but her eyes widened when she saw him, despite the fact that she had been waiting for him.

"Raz!" she practically yelped, throwing her arms around him.

With a slight _whoof_, he returned the embrace. "It's good to see you too."

She stopped hugging him, but her hands were still on his arms. Both stared into each others eyes, hardly believing that they were back together again.

Raz was just about to suggest they leave the dock when Lili gave him a playful shove. The move was so unexpected that he stepped backwards clumsily, and lost his footing. A loud splash followed, and Lili stared down, expecting to see him resurface any second. Suddenly, Raz's head broke the water, but some sort of had, comprised entirely of viscous water, grabbed him and forced him under again.

"What the..?" Lili said, but quickly regained her composure, never one to stand around gawking.

Quickly, she put one hand on her hand and moved the other one around skillfully, forming a large, square hand comprised entirely of psychic energy. The hand lunged underwater and pulled up a sputtering, terrified Raz, the demonic hand still grabbing onto his ankle.

Lili gave one final tug, and the hand finally relinquished its hold. Both of them crashed backwards onto the dock. Raz sat up quickly, panting, wiping his face on his sleeve. Lili sat up and looked at him.

"Not even thirty seconds into our meeting and we get into trouble," she said, rolling her eyes.


	2. Runes in the Cavern

**CHAPTER 2**

Lili helped Raz up slowly, clear that he was still disoriented and rather unsure of his surroundings. "Maybe we should leave the beach eh?" she asked.

Raz nodded, slowly getting control of himself. "Y-yeah. Good idea."

Holding hands, they both crossed the sandy beach and traversed the spiraling walkway, until they were in front of the main lodge. The both walked through the soft, slightly overgrown grass and sat down on one of the picnic benches, across from each other.

"Not a day went by that I didn't think of you," Raz said suddenly, causing Lili to jerk her head up and look at him. "It's good to be back together. I only wish this would last… but my father is coming to pick me up in a week."

"Mine too," Lili said, "Then it's back to the family that 'doesn't exist'."

Both teens released simultaneous sighs.

"Well," Lili piped up again, more out of the need to break the silence than anything, "No sense in just sitting around. We might as well get up and do something."

In a burst of energy, Raz displayed a practiced vault over the table and landed behind her, seemingly with little effort. He gently took her hands and helped her out.

"You've got some muscle on you," she observed as he lifted her effortlessly, then smiled at his slight embarrassment.

"Uh, yeah, you know, Circus training and everything," he said.

She accepted the answer, much to Raz's relief—after all, it was the truth.

Lili looked at him, her eyes containing the tiniest trace of concern. "You know, I think it's good that you got this time away… you seem tense. This will be a good chance for you to relax."

He smiled at her. "I think so too. Why don't we walk down to the Kid's Cabins and see if there have been any changes."

Arms linked, they both followed the simple dirt path, stepping onto the rickety bridge that would lead them to the Kids Cabins area. As Raz looked down, he marveled at the welcome, nostalgia-inducing vista. Far below, the wilderness and forests branched out, the ground completely covered by a lush canopy of assorted trees.

As they stepped off the bridge, their feet crunched into a thick layer of fallen leaves. Another fresh wave of nostalgia hit both of them as they looked around the small area. Trees that were once young saplings now towered over them, their dying branches swaying softly in the wintry breeze.

Just like Raz and Lili, nothing much had changed. They relished it, not wanting the memories they had been a part of to be erased…

"Oh," Raz said suddenly. "You said in the letter you had something to show me."

Lili looked confused, but the expression did not linger. "That's right… follow me…"

Levitating up off the ground and up to the roof of the cabins, Lili then proceeded to bounce to a rocky outcropping jutting out of the cliff face. There was a small tunnel leading deeper underground, and Raz followed her through it.

Struggling to remember the exact features of the tunnel, Lili said, "There should be a long drop somewhere arou—_whaa-aaaat?"_

It was obvious by the sudden rushing of air and the increase in speed that Lili had misjudged the difference, and the slight drop turned out to be a great deal longer than they expected. Raz growled as his head struck the low ceiling above, but before he could do anything the tunnel ended and they crashed out into a dark, sparsely lit cave in a crumpled heap.

Both teens were still too disoriented and bruised to recover right away. Instead, Lili said rather confusedly, "I… I think my hand is on your groin."

It took a moment for that to sinks in as both of them laid there, trying to regain their senses. When it did…

"Aaah, sorry!" she yelped, springing up.

Raz withdrew quickly as well, and equally embarrassed look on his face. He covered it up and changed the subject. "So, whatever you want to show me is in this cavern?"

A small drip of water punctuated the still-awkward silence.

"Yeah," Lili said, motioning to the wall with her hand.

Both of them turned to look at the cave wall. Carved into its hard, rocky surface were hundred of glowing, intricate symbols. Raz stared at it, dumbfounded, before turning to Lili.

"Any idea what it means?" he asked her.

"I was only able to decipher a fragment of it," she responded, shaking her head. "It says something along the lines of, 'Six cycles after The Entanglement and new power shall emerge' but that's all I could get."

Raz rubbed his chin, staring at the runes. "This part here… says something about a 'gathering place' for psychic energy…"

Lili looked at him. "Ford Cruller's Sanctuary. The deposits there keep his mind in check."

"And it's not summer any more, so he won't be around," Raz finished for her. "Maybe we should go check out old Cruller's, eh?"

Lili nodded. "The weird thing is that the underground cart he uses to travel around is still operational, and sometime while we were gone, a new track was built leading to this cavern."

She walked over to a fairly large rock and concentrate, beginning to use telekinesis. Raz helped her, and soon two glowing hands lifted the rock and threw it against the cavern.

"What would Agent Cruller want with a bunch of runes?" Raz wondered aloud.

Lili leapt down the shaft, landing neatly in the seat of the talking cart. "Welcome, Agent Cruller," it said in its monotonous voice.

Raz landed behind her and reclined slightly, grasping the back of the seat. "Take us… err, me to my sanctuary," he informed it.

"Right away, sir!"

As the cart began to push off, Raz said to Lili half-jokingly, "Hopefully this won't take too long—I was planning on stargazing tonight."


	3. Tensions Run High

**CHAPTER 3**

Lili pulled herself out of the log, shortly followed by Raz. She looked around her and stared in wonder, which was quickly replaced with sadness.

The entire place was in ruins. The monitors were cracked and dysfunctional, and the levitating platforms had lost power and were strewn around the bottom of the cavern, which was littered with rubble, probably caused by a minor cave-in.

"Who could have done this?" she wondered.

"I think what is more like it," Raz said.

Standing there in the opening of the hallway to the observatory was a giant—thing. It stood on long, double-jointed legs, with four powerful-looking arms sprouting from its muscularly built chest. A long, feather tail rattled softly. The rest of its body was covered in gnarled, emerald-colored scales that pulsated softly. Its head was short and rectangular, with no apparent mouth and glowing white eyes, and rested on a long neck. Huge, bat-like wings sprouted from its back.

It sat dead-still, looking at them.

"Careful, Lili," Raz warned, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"We have to assume this thing is dangerous," she said to him. "Let's try knocking it out. Maybe then we can get a better look at it, and see if it really caused all this damage."

A sudden crack drew both their attention. Scales were falling off the creature's snout, exposing a blood-stained mouth containing more teeth than any shark. They were bigger and longer, too.

Both teens backed away. In response, the creature took one step forward. A longue, purple tongue dripping bloody saliva extended from its mouth.

"On three, use an aggression blast," Raz told her. "One…"

The creature took another step, spreading the feathers in its tail.

"Two…" Lili said for him.

"Three!" They both fired.

The creature hissed loudly as the blasts made impact with its scales, which sprayed everywhere. When the dislodged scales impacted with the walls, they crumbled, and a strange yellow dust floated up from them.

More scales sprouted from the injured points on the creature's body. It was whole again, and mad. With an ear-splitting shriek, it moved forward with unbelievable speed, knocking Raz down and jumping on top of him. All four arms swung back, in preparation to strike…

…but the blow never came. The creature hissed in surprise, seeing a giant glowing hand holding its hands behind its back. Lili concentrated, working her hands skillfully. Raz also began to concentrate, and another hand pushed against the creature's chest.

The combined forces threw the creature backward with as much speed as it had approached. The creature was still howling in rage but was suddenly cut off as it slammed into the cavern wall. They saw it drop and hear its body crunch into the ground below them. Huge chunks of dusty rubble dislodged from the ceiling and landed on top of it to finish the job.

"Yes!" Lili said, pumping her left arm victoriously. "Take that, you scaly bastard!"

Raz was shocked by her sudden colorful language, but then just laughed. Suddenly, a dizzy feeling began to overtake him. "Lili! The powder, from the scales…"

A small cloud and been blown into Raz's face during the turmoil of the battle. Slowly, he put a hand over his forehead and staggered forward. She was at his side in an instant, supporting him. Thankfully, the rest of the powder was dissipating, as were its affects on Raz.

"Whew," he panted. "That thing is tough. I think it's safe to say we didn't kill it. And I don't even want to know what that powder would have down in larger amounts."

"One heck of a defense," Lili mused. "You don't dare injure it."

Raz nodded. "We should get out of here before it attacks again. I don't exactly think we should approach it and see if it caused the damage… for all we know that's what it wants us to do. Let's head back to the cavern and look at those runes some more… I have a feeling they'll tell us everything we need to know."

* * *

The creature was indeed conscious, and slightly disappointed at the sound of their fading footsteps. It had hoped they would come down to try and finish the fight; it enjoyed the battle. But the one in the green scarf had inhaled some of the dust from its shattered scales, which was an unexpected benefit.

Slowly, shaking all the rubble off of itself and folding its wings, it began to ponder. Sitting there, the creature looked far more intelligent than the mindless beast that had moments before been hellbent on doing nothing but killing.

_He'll need to inhale more before it can have any real effect_, the creature thought, feeling only slightly frustrated. _And I don't fancy standing around letting him attack me. Ah well, no point in squatting around here._

Spreading its wings, the creature flew up to the upper levels and observed the miniscule log from which the two humans had arrived and departed. It shifted its body around quite a bit so it could fit down the chamber, and emerged in an underground rapid transit system. Not caring which way it went, as long as it lead out, the creature found the nearest exit and flew out into the night sky.

* * *

Raz groaned, flopping backwards in exhaustion. They had been examining the runes for an hour now, but with no real way of translating them, it was a lost cause. The fact that the secret was right in front of him, yet just beyond his grasp, frustrated him more than he thought possible.

Lili detected his frustration and scooted over to were he lay on his back, staring up at the low-hanging ceiling of the cave. "I know what you're thinking, but what other choice do we have? That thing could have killed us, and if we meet it again unprepared it might very well finish the job."

"I know, I know," he said, sitting up reluctantly. "But why not look somewhere else? We don't know the language of the runes, and staring at them for another hour won't do us any good."

She stared at him evenly. "Do you know any other place to even start looking?"

"Well, no, but…"

"Exactly," she said sharply, and then emitted a very exasperated sigh. "Look, I don't like this any more than you do… but what else do we have to go on?"

"Nothing," he admitted, "Nothing."

Lili easily detected something different in his voice when he repeated his answer, and knew that something was troubling him. She scooted even closer and began rubbing his shoulders, pleased when he let out an audible, content moan.

"Come on, Raz, what's really bothering you?"

Any trace of happiness he had been uttering a few seconds earlier vanished in an instant. "This whole thing, that's what! This is the first time when I haven't an idea of what to do…"

She waited patiently for him to finish.

"…Don't you get it? This creature has us beat."


	4. Fiery Encounter in a Wintery Night

**CHAPTER 4**

"Don't say that," Lili told him, trying to be as encouraging as possible. "We're probably just too tired to think well. We should rest."

"Oh? You really want to risk going to sleep with that thing prowling around outside?" Raz retorted.

"Yes. I know this camp like the back of my hand. Besides, what are we going to do, stay awake for the rest of the week?"

Raz opened his mouth to say something, found no words ready to come forth, and clamped it shut again. An awkward silence followed.

"Lead the way," he said finally.

They both stood up and entered the underground rapid transit system. Under direction of Lili, Raz directed it to take them to the CPC and Wilderness area. He ride was short, and soon both teens found themselves out in the bitter cold of fast-approaching winter in the middle of a dark, foreboding forest.

"I know one place where we can be safe from that thing," she said to him quietly. "Engage your invisibility, so we can make it there undetected."

Both of them stood there and concentrated. Slowly, the darkness began to bend and curl around them, cloaking them except for the vaguest outline. She lead them down into the shallow creek and slipped through a small hole at the bottom of a steel grate.

"I know this place," Raz whispered to her. "This is where I found the glass eye for the scavenger hunt! This place is filled with water; we'll freeze if we try to sleep here."

"You never went behind the grate," Lili pointed out. "There's an upward slope that leads to a small cavern right below the GPC. It's a tight fit for two people, but it stays warm."

Sure enough, just out of sight, a muddy hill banked upwards and led into a miniature, earth-packed cavern. Both teens were so exhausted that they laid down immediately. Raz drifted off to sleep rather quickly, but Lili remained awake, wracked with nervousness.

Although she would never admit it to him, she got scared at night quite easily, and the fact that a murderous_ thing_ was prowling around outside didn't help anything. She waited until she was sure Raz was asleep, then slowly edged closer to him, resting her head on his chest, taking comfort in his steady heartbeat. She was so content just to be with him that she didn't notice he had woken up while she shifted, and smiled fondly down at her as she nuzzled closer to him. He wrapped one arm around her, then slowly nodded off himself.

* * *

_Snap._

Raz's eyes flew open at the sound, and he sat up slowly, so as not to disturb Lili. He hoped to death that it was only a squirrel or bird breaking a dry branch, and not their unknown assailant. All hopes were dashed when he heard something large outside breathe in and out heavily, as if scenting the air.

"Lili," he whispered as quietly as possible, shaking her slightly. "Wake up."

"Wha..?" she mumbled sleepily. "Five more minutes…" she said, pulling up Raz's shirt to cover herself as if it were a blanket and nuzzling deeper into his chest.

Red with embarrassment, he pulled his shirt back down as fast as possible and shook her harder. "Wake up," he repeated.

"What is it?" she said, sitting up slowly as well, sounding slightly frustrated.

"We're in trouble."

She froze instantly. Already, the sound of something moving around outside were growing increasingly closer. Lili crawled forward on her stomach and peered down the slight incline, looking at the grate. The water around the bottom had frozen over into ice, and she could tell by the bitter chill in the air that it had snowed, too.

_Crack-splash._

She edged backward quickly at the sound of a heavy foot breaking the ice and plunging into the water beneath. The steps were growing closer at a steady pace. Both teens held their breath, waiting to see that demonic being, scales breaking off to reveal its horrible, bloody maw…

The sounds stopped abruptly.

Rigid with fright, Raz and Lili slowly began to edge towards the grate, hopeful that their assailant had turned away. The night was perfectly quiet now. Lili placed her face against the grate to see if she could detect the creature.

"HS-SHRIIIIIEK!"

With an ear-splitting scream, the creature bashed its head against the grating, and the metal pipes exploded inward, earning a terrified scream from Lili. Raz slid forward and grabbed Lili, dragging her out of the range of the creature's claws.

The creature drew back and lunged forward again with renewed intensity, but it was far too large to fit through the small opening both teens had crawled through. Stuck from the torso up, its arms pinned against its side, the creature's neck thrashed wildly, tongue flailing, spraying bloody saliva against the walls.

Then it stopped, and rested its head against the floor of the cavern.

"What is it doing?" Raz asked, edging further away from the thing, even though it seemed to have tired itself out.

In a flash, the creature's eyes snapped open and its head jerked forward, an aggression blast flying from its forehead and smacking Raz in the face. Caught unprepared, he took the full brunt of the attack and flew backwards, crashing against the all of the small cavern and sliding to the floor.

Lili rolled to the side, caught up in the heat of battle. "You want to fight rough?"

Even though her eyes were shut, she avoided the next aggression blast and retaliated with her own psychic attack: pyrokinesis. A huge burst of flame engulfed the creature's head, crackling with an angry intensity.

The creature stopped attacking and began to shriek again, not in rage but in terrible pain. Its entire body writhed as it desperately tried to free itself, as the scales began to melt off its burning face. The yellow gases slowly began to be released from the wounds, and the results were, to say the least, explosive.

Obviously flammable, when the dust came in contact with the fire it began to spark. A huge detonation resulted, so large that it blew chunks out of the entrance to the cavern and flung the creature back. It smashed through the ice and laid on its back in the shallow, freezing water, its charred face smoking. Its chest was heaving, and its eyes were burned from their sockets. Even though it was finally free, the creature showed no sign of wanting to attack, or moving at all for that matter.

Lili pulled the unconscious Raz into a sitting position. Walking forward, she scooped some water in her hand and splashed it against his face. He shuddered and groaned loudly, slowly coming to. His face was bruised, and back was sore, but was in one piece.

"I guess we can't hide here anymore," Lili said sarcastically.

"Why do we…" Raz stopped and closed his eyes until the headache subsided, "…need to hide anymore?"

"Because," Lili said simply, pointing to the injured creature, "It's healing."

Raz looked. Sure enough, the scales were beginning to regenerate, and tissues were mending in the sockets to form new eyes.

"Then we should finish it here," he said, standing up.

As if sensing their malicious intent, the creature rolled over and clumsily tried to stand. Still weak, it crawled to its feet and uncurled its wings, lifting off into the air with labored downbeats. Seconds later the creature was gone, hiding off in some unknown place, nursing its wounds.

"We should find a better place," Lili suggested again. "It was stupid of me not to realize that this thing could track us. And since we now know it has psychic powers, it'll be even harder to escape."

"That's what bothers me," Raz said, rubbing his sore back. "How did this thing come to have psychic powers? Even if you're born with them, it takes a lot of training to harness them and use them at that level. I doubt that thing signed up to Whispering Rock Psychic Summer Camp, if you catch my drift..."


	5. Rasputin's Dark Past

**CHAPTER 5**

Lili clung to Raz's arm as they trekked further through the GPC. A light snowfall had begun, and the white flakes had already formed a fine dust over the ground. The trees' once leafy branches were cold, brittle, and utterly dead, rattling as the winds pasted between them.

"I'm running out of ideas," Raz sighed. "It seems like anywhere we go, it can go. It can follow our scent if we turn invisible. It knows how to use the underground transit system. It has psychic powers, which it will undoubtedly use next time it sees us. Maybe we should stop running. For all we know it's dragging this conflict out. Maybe if we fight it, we can figure out a way to kill it…"

Lili didn't respond. She new he was thinking aloud to himself rather than actually talking to her. The temperature was dropping with the dwindling day, and the snowfall was increasing significantly.

Suddenly, from behind them, a dreaded sound filled their ears. Something—and they both knew very well what—was only a short distance behind them. The creature was stalking them, but obviously very clumsily; it wasn't approaching them silently as usual, but actually making a great deal of noise, as if it were stepping on every dried twig possible.

As if it wanted them to know their death was only seconds away.

"Looks like we don't have to run anymore," Lili said, already beginning to concentrate.

"Let's end this," Raz responded grimly.

A blur of movement surged towards them, launching itself from a pocket of shadows between two massive black trees. Raz and Lili both jumped to each side to avoid the attack and sprung up to launch their own assault…

…but the creature was gone again, concealed in the shadows, making even more noise. Suddenly, Raz felt four clawed hands slam into his chest, although he couldn't see his attacker. The impact sent him sliding backwards through the snow, watching the creature slowly appear.

"Invisibility," Raz mused. "It was using invisibility."

Lili fired aggression blasts at it, blowing huge clumps of scales off its massive upper chest. The creature swiveled its head on its serpentine neck, and switched its attack to her. It planted two of its four arms on her shoulders, using its other two to smack into her neck, sending her deep into unconsciousness.

Finally gaining a purchase in the slippery snow, Raz sprung up and fired off a powerful aggression blast. The creature looked at Raz, then to the powder drifting up from its shattered scales, then back to Raz. Something seemed to click in its mind.

With a screech that sounded oddly triumphant, it tore scales off its chest with its only arm that wasn't holding Lili captive and flung them at Raz. They impacted with his body and shattered, spraying their contents all over him.

Raz felt an overpowering dizziness and staggered heavily, his limbs turning unbearably heavy. He went down on one knee, his entire body starting to go rigid. His senses were muddling, swirling into a blackness unlike anything he had ever experienced before.

Suddenly, he wasn't in the wilderness anymore. He was lying on his back in wet grass in front of a series of caravans. Lighting cracked brightly overhead, and huge torrents of rain were splashing down. Sitting up, he looked at his hands and realized that he seemed to be back in his ten year old body.

A voice was calling out to him. It was strangely distorted, but slowly became coherent. More voices joined it, laughing and jeering.

"Hey, look," laughed a very deep, malice-ridden voice, "It's the circus freak."

Raz scrambled backwards furiously, trying to get away from those people. "No, no, no," he whispered to himself. "Not back here. Not now."

A second voice chimed in, this one strangely high-pitched and equally annoying. "Yer daddy says psychics are good for nothing. Suppose he won't mind if we take one problem off his hands?"

The group moved closer, and Raz studied them, hoping desperately that something wouldn't match up. But it did. His past was somehow repeating itself, one of his most painful memories was about to be relived. The mob approaching was pulling out cruel weapons, most of them clubs, a rare few dotted with bent nails or spikes.

Raz stood up to run, but they were bigger, and sadly, faster. As soon as he stood up, they surrounded him, one of them shoving him back to the ground and raising his weapon above his head. Raz held up his hands, as if it would somehow block off the attack…

Horrible sounds of impacts punctuated the downpour of the rain, drowned out occasionally by a huge blast of thunder. Lighting strikes lit up the scene ominously, the most basic silhouettes viewable, swinging their weapons over and over again.

The rain-soaked grass around the mob's feet began to become stained red. Suddenly, they all stopped their vicious attack and stepped back, as if admiring their handiwork.

"That'll do, boys," the deep-voiced man grunted. "Leave him to rot."

The group laughed quietly amongst themselves, dispersing into the night. They revealed Raz, lying on his back, his body a mass of cuts, bruises, and blood. It trickled steadily from his mouth, pooled around his body. His goggles were cracked, his black jacket torn and stained a dark crimson. He wasn't breathing so much as panting; each ragged breath horribly pain-filled. His breaths slowly began to subside, as it was obvious his body was slowly losing the fight for survival.

_Circus freak…_

_

* * *

_

The creature rested on its haunches again, once again showing its rare, intellectual side. It watched the human in front of it, watched as its breathing became rapid and it broke out into a sweat. It would have smiled maliciously if it had lips.

_Gave me quite a bit of trouble, these two did, _it thought. _But I can take care of the girl easily once she has served her purpose. And him… he will succumb to his memories before the day is new._

The creature stood up, and the connection it had with Raz was severed, leaving him to his own nightmares. It had enjoyed seeing the thing the human feared most actually occur, but it had another agenda.

_Such a pity, _it thought. _To come from a resentful family, and to be the victim of such abuse. Maybe seeing his son half-dead is what caused the father to be more considerate, to help him undo The Untanglement. Still, I wonder why he ever put up with it in the first… I only wish I could see how he survived._

The creature stood up and unfurled its great wings, leaping off into the sky. It was certain that it would have accomplished its goal before the night had ended.

_

* * *

_

The snow fell heavily, the winds howling so loud that it masked the approaching footsteps. A strange shape approached the near-frozen body of Razputin and lifted it effortlessly.

"This is not to be your resting place," a strange, obviously inhuman voice said, its voice carrying a great, untamed power to it. "But you are welcome to stay… anyways."


	6. Escape from the BioWeapons Lab

**CHAPTER 6**

Lili awoke groggily, her neck feeling impossibly sore. She was disoriented and was blinking rapidly, drying to restore its eyesight to its proper abilities.

_What happened..? _She struggled to recall. _We were walking somewhere… the GPC, I think. And then the creature… where is it? _She wondered suddenly.

She finally cast a look around. The creature was nowhere to be seen, but her situation was still precarious. Right beneath her was a tray of dangerous looking instruments, none of which she thought the creature would know how to use. Still, if she was planning on escaping (which, of course, she was) she would have to be very careful not to land on them.

The room itself was fairly tiny and circular, focused around a control center in the middle of the room. A sliding door was accessible from the other side of the room. The chair she was sitting on was suspended high off the floor by chains and wires. Directly in front of her was a hovering holo-screen, blueprints etched into its glowing surface. Interested, Lili peered closer and saw the basic outline of the creature that had been hunting them this entire time. Various parts of its body seemed to be encased in bulky armor, but she couldn't make out much more than that.

Then she realized something: she wasn't bound to the chair in any way. _Maybe the creature isn't smart enough to tie me down… or maybe Raz already mopped the floor with it, _she thought. _Wait a second, where is Raz?_

She had been so intent on analyzing her situation that she hadn't realized his absence until now. "Well," she said to herself, "Either he's off safe somewhere, or… well, I'm not even going to consider anything else. Time to get out of this shithole."

She hung off the edge of a chair, grabbed one of the wires leading from its bottom to the tiled floor, and slid down. As soon as her feet touched ground, the door slid open, and the creature stepped into the room. It screeched angrily when it saw her standing free and launched itself towards her.

Whoever had built the room hadn't kept it very clean. Lili easily evaded the lunge by leaping to the right, and the creature sailed headfirst into a stack of books, files, and unsorted papers. She didn't stop to watch the thing get buried; instead she made a run for the door.

She emerged in a long, narrow hallway that was lit overhead by tiny artificial lights. Not even stopping to get her bearings, she ran down the hallway as fast as she could, but she knew it would be in vain. Already she could hear the creature's footsteps fast approaching behind her.

"Dammit, I don't want to get caught again!" she growled to herself. It was in this moment of defiance that an idea struck her.

She filled her forward momentum and spun around in one surprisingly coordinated movement, launching herself towards the creature. Shrieking with surprise, the beast halted in its charge and watched her slide between its legs. As she sprung up, she grabbed the creature with telekinesis and slammed into mercilessly into the metal walls of the passage.

Stunned with the impact, the creature slumped to the ground, and Lili continued to run. She reached the door and practically tumbled into the next room, which consisted of many levitating platforms, leading up to a hole in the ceiling.

Carefully, Lili prepared herself to jump. She made it to the first platform and slumped forward, grabbing the platform to keep from falling off. Another few leaps, and she was right on the second to last platform right beneath the exit. However, the next platform was even further away, and she knew she would have to give it everything she had if she didn't want to fall to the floor below. It was a long way down, and to make matters worse, she could hear the creature giving chase once more.

Closing her eyes, Lili leapt forward with all her might… and nearly fell short. With a scared gasp, she swung her left arm forwards and latched onto the edge of the platform, which gave a reluctant squeal. She had to pull herself up or fall and possibly die.

The creature entered the room and saw her instantly. It crouched low, swaying slightly, gathering its legs beneath it. Then, with one explosive leap, it launched itself forward. With a single leap it was only two platforms behind her.

Grunting, Lili pulled herself onto the final platform and leaped directly upwards, latching onto the edge of the port that would take her outside of the strange facility. At the same time, the creature stretched out one leg and merely stepped to the next platform.

Lili looked desperately for some way to buy herself time enough to pull herself up through the port. There, just a little distance off, was a power button a tiny bit smaller than her fist. Sweat beading on her forehead, she stretched one arm out, trying desperately to reach the button.

The creature crossed the final platform and was standing right beneath her now, about to reach up and clamp its claws around her ankle. With a triumphant cry, Lili smashed her fist into the button, and the results occurred instantly.

All the power was immediately cut off, and the platforms plunged to the ground below. The creature shrieked in terrible rage as it, too plummeted all the way down. Lili didn't pull herself up until she heard the heavy slam of it smashing into the ground below. Then, with a proud smirk, she pulled herself up through the hole.

And looking up, saw another creature standing right in front of her. This one seemed to be the thing she had seen in the blueprints, for although it was built exactly like her earlier attacker, most of its body was encased in bulky battle armor. It turned its helmeted face down towards her and helped her stand. She could feel its pupiless eyes watching her from behind its T-shaped visor.

"Well done," it said to her. "But come now, your friend is in danger."

Lili got over the fact that this thing was talking to her rather quickly. "Raz? Take me to him, now!"

The creature nodded, seeming unaffected by her terse tone. Slowly, a levitation ball began to form underneath each wing, and it lifted off into the night sky with Lili in tow.

"Where are we going?" she asked, not even sure why she was trusting it. "And who exactly are you?"

"We are going to the remote Advanced Medical Labs recently established by Ford Cruller and Sasha Nein," it replied. "My name is Kalb."

"What do you know about Ford Cruller and Sasha?" Lili demanded, surprised at hearing their names.

"In a way," Kalb said, his voice taking on a bitter tone, "They are me. Stop talking now, you must focus your efforts on saving your friend."


	7. Razputin's Origins

**CHAPTER 7**

Kalb landed right outside the towering Medical Labs and gently deposited Lili on the ground. "Go," he grunted. "Your friend is in the first room. Save him, and it will create a time for me to reveal all."

Lili was feeling very scared, even more scared than she had been the first time they encountered the savage-minded creature. But she was scared for Raz, not herself—afraid that she might find him lying in blood-stained sheets… she shook the thoughts from her mind.

She entered the first room as told and immediately spotted him. Calling out his name, she rushed to his side. He was deathly pale, barely breathing, and seemed to be caught in some sort of nightmare. His brows were furrowed, and he was sweating profusely. She knelt by the bed he was in and took one of his gloved hands.

"Raz, it's alright," she said desperately. "I'm here." Then, noticing Kalb had positioned himself in the doorway, she asked, "Why won't he wake up?"

"A powerful hallucination-inducing chemical inside the scales of my counterpart," Kalb answered. "He is trapped, reliving his most painful memory. He is dying. You are his only chance… you must show him that he has people who care, that he is not alone…"

Lili leaned forward and planted a gentle kiss on Raz's cheek. "You can wake up," she repeated again, more afraid than she had ever been in her life. "You're not alone. You never have been. I'll always be here…"

She looked to find Kalb, to see if his disposition could tell her if she was making any difference. The armored being simply turned away and walked out, his shoulders sagging in what seemed to be sadness.

"No…" she whispered. "He can't be gone…"

She stopped trying to choke back the tears and put her head in his chest, sobbing bitterly. She refused to believe that the one person who had put meaning back in her life was gone.

"Hey…"

She gasped and snapped her head up. The voice was weak, but definitely real. Lili turned to face Raz and saw with utter delight that his green eyes were half-open, although he looked thoroughly exhausted.

"…what's with the tears?"

Words could not express the relief in happiness she felt, just in hearing his voice. She lunged forward and hugged him tightly. Slowly, he returned the embrace.

Suddenly, Kalb was right there beside them. "Razputin, do you remember what memory you were trapped in?"

His eyes were suddenly filled with sadness. He looked away, feeling Kalb's eyes gazing at him steadily from behind the T-shaped visor. "Yes."

"Then perhaps you should tell us."

Lili's gaze was full of question. Raz suddenly knew that he couldn't keep it from her any longer.

"When I was young," he said, taking a deep breath before continuing, "I was severely abused. Every night it seemed they would be there waiting for me. My parents were no better… even through gloves my mother wouldn't touch me. My father was in on all of it… he would force me to 'train', to practice my acrobatics all day long. But the pain I endured during training made me strong… strong that I could survive the abuse that occurred each and every night. It was a vicious cycle…"

_It's no wonder he ran away, _Lili thought, fresh tears springing to her eyes.

Kalb didn't say anything. His glowing, T-shaped visor gave no clue to his expression. Lili slid closer to Raz and let him lean against her, obviously distraught by his memories. Lili thought she had it bad where she came from, but compared to Raz's tale it was nothing.

"Razputin," Kalb murmured, "Take comfort knowing that you will never be affected by that nightmare-inducing powder. But there is one thing I must ask of you: did you find a cavern filled with runes?"

Raz lifted his eyes, but his head remained rested on Lili's shoulder. "Yes. We even tried to decipher the runes, but could only understand a tiny fragment."

Kalb stroked his faceplate, seeming distracted. "That is a very ancient, coded language. I am surprised you were able to translate any of it. What could you read?"

Lili answered first. "Six cycles after The Entanglement a new power shall emerge_…"_

"…And it also mentions a gathering place for psychic power," Raz cut in. "We figured out that it meant the psytanium mother load in Ford's Sanctuary, so we went there first. That's when we first saw that thing."

"Tsyr was in Ford's Santcuary?" Kalb asked, sounding troubled. His body tensed, and he leaned forward. "What was he doing there?"

"Hunting us," Raz stated flatly. "Apparently, it got bored while waiting, and decided to practice on all the tech' in there. The entire cavern is in ruins now."

Kalb sat back again, although he seemed far from calm. "This is dark news you bring. I suppose both of you know, deep down inside, what the Entanglement is?"

Raz and Lili both looked at each other. Suddenly the answer became painfully obvious. "When my brain became entangled with Oleander's, thus creating the Meat Circus."

"I know for a fact that cycles translate into years," Kalb stated, his tailfeathers rustling softly as he shifted. "And it has been six years since that event, has it not?"

"It has," Lili replied.

"Then we have less time than I anticipated. Tsyr's awakening brings only trouble… and the fact that I was not able to detect it brings even more problems. I'm afraid my powers are diminishing rapidly without the subconscious of my creators to envigorate me. Razputin, Lili, it is up to both of you now. I will help where I can, but I cannot lift a finger against Tsyr in my current state," Kalb said, his ovice sounding strangely sad.

"Your creators?" Raz asked, finally lifting his head from Lili's shoulder. "Who are they?"

"I was wondering the same thing," Lili agreed. "And on the way over here, you said about Cruller and Sasha:'they are me'. What exactly does all of this mean? Before we do anything, we need answers."

Kalb stood up rapidly and headed for the door, as if he was going to ignore them. But at the last second he froze, looked owards them, turned away again. Then he turned completely, paced in a circle, and collapsed. He seemed to be suffering from a great deal of inner turmoil.

"Fine," he snarled, sitting up so he was resting on his haunches. "I'll tell you everything."


	8. Kalb's Origins

**CHAPTER 8**

"As you know," Kalb began, pacing his words slowly, as it was obvious he disliked talking and tried to avoid it as much as possible. "After news of the events at Thorney Towers reached the general public, there was considerable… speculation… on the balance between number of Psychonauts and number of tasks to be completed. And after news of the kidnapping of the head of the Psychonauts reached the world, there was a considerable outcry.

Ford Cruller, Sasha Nein, Milla Vodello, and Coach Oleander all decided that the emergencies were getting far out of hand. When it became common knowledge that even the mightiest Psychonauts could be tricked, a new plot to bring them to their knees was hatching at every corner. It was during this period of turmoil that the Psychonauts suffered considerable losses. Plans to start training new cadets were put into motion."

Kalb paused, running his hands over corresponding sides of his visor and up his faceplate. The metal glimmered softly, in accordance to the blue glow of his T-shaped visor. He shifted on his haunches and laced his hands before continuing.

"By now, however, the general public had learned the dangers of being a Psychonaut. New reports had revealed all sorts of unexpected risks, and no one was willing to put their own lives into danger. The tutors at Whispering Rock saw fewer and fewer cadets as the years passed by, and only a small few of them actually qualified to become a Psychonaut. The ranks of the psychic began to fall alarmingly.

"So, only two years ago, Cruller, Nein, Vodello, and Oleander decided that if cadets would not come willingly, they would have to create the ultimate psychic weapon. A living being, more lethal, powerful, and intelligent than any Psychonaut. A being laced to their minds, totally obedient, that they could send on the most perilous journey, and it would emerge triumphant.

"They established the BioWeapons Facility that Tsyr chased you through…" Kalb suddenly paused. A lone cigar floated up beside his face, ignited itself, and inserted itself into a tiny slot in his faceplate. He pulled it out with two fingers and breathed a puff of smoke into the air, just like Sasha had done millions of times in the past. "…you'll have to excuse this habit…"

Raz and Lili watched him confusedly. "…Why do you...smoke?" Razked confusedly.

"Quiet down, and I'll tell you," Kalb said, shaking his armored head slightly. "Anyways… they began to construct a machine that would duplicate and channel their psyche, personality, knowledge… every part of them and blend it. It should have created one being, synonymous with each of them. Instead, a design failure channeled their psyches without duplicating them. Instead, it duplicated the creature… creating Tsyr and I.

"Tsyr inherited their psychical strength and combat prowess. Immediately after separating from me, he broke free of the labs and left, never to be seen again. I, on the other hand, inherited their personalities, their knowledge, and their psychic prowess."

"Which is why you smoke, like Sasha," Lili concluded. "I bet you have a bunch of the other's habits as well. But why do you wear that armor?"

"This is not mere armor," Kalb stated flatly. "Since Tsyr inherited their psychical attributes, my body alone is too frail to move without aid. This armor functions as protection, life support, and enhances my physical functions so I can operate at a level equal to Tsyr."

"So why not fight him?" Raz asked.

"You don't understand…" Kalb said, again sounding very sad. "I can't. I don't know how, and even if I did, it's not a 'part' of me. It is a sacrifice I have paid for my powerful mind… and my soul."

"Which is why Tsyr is just a mindless killing thing," Lili said angrily.

"Mindless?" Kalb said, and began to laugh. It was not a pleasant sound, more akin to a choking noise deep in his throat than an actual chuckle. "Oh, he is far from mindless. He brought you down to the BioWeapons Facility, did he not? He learned how to use psychic powers by watching you. Don't you see? Tsyr holds the most important key to life: adaptability. He can learn."

"Well, then, you can too!" Raz practically shouted, standing up. "Tsyr may be ten times stronger than you physically, but you misunderstand something. Adapability isn't the key to life. Having a soul… being capable of emotions, and friendship… that is the key."

Kalb looked away sadly. The cigar went out, the telekinesis holding it in place following suit. Raz closed his eyes and stretched out with his mind, trying to read the being's thoughts. He was surprised at what he found.

"You admire Tsyr," Raz said, suddenly feeling very sorry for the creature in front of him. "You are tortured by your emotions. You feel chained, shackled to turmoil by them. You want to be free, knowing the one intent in life."

"He is a survivor," Kalb said, raising his long, muscular neck. "Unclouded by delusions of morality. He is alive. Me… I am dead. I am a worthless collection of souls thrown together and encased in a husk. My existence is pain, can't you see it?"

"My existence was pain," Raz said, causing Kalb to turn away but wince slightly. "Every day, weren't you paying attention? But I escaped from it. Because I have a soul, I have a reason to live. And so do you."

Kalb still wouldn't look at him.

"We have no change against Tsyr without you," Raz confessed, folding his arms across his chest. "You may not be able to fight him, but we can. And you know everything about Tsyr… you can predict his moves. With you guiding us, we can put a stop to him."

For the longest time, it seemed Kalb would deny them. Then, slowly, his serpentine neck swiveled and he turned to face him, his visor making him as apathetic as ever.

"Powerful human child," he whispered. Then, in a strangely feral voice, he said, "I agree to help you for the time being. But first we must go to the rune cavern. Far too much has been left undiscovered. If you are to fight Tsyr, you must embrace every aspect of him."


	9. Reading of the Runes

**CHAPTER 9**

Aided by Kalb's enhanced levitation, the odd trio reached the cavern in less than half the usual time. Raz was surprised at how agile the being was at high speeds, weaving around trees, down the hollow stump, and through the long network of underground tunnels.

They stopped just below the entrance to the cavern. Kalb careful lifted each of them up into the cavern before climbing up through himself. His massive body barely fit through the tiny, stalagmite-lined opening.

"This section of runes is unimportant," he grunted, waving a clawed hand at a portion of the stony wall. "What you need to focus on is this section, right here."

Raz and Lili both stared at it for a long time, but they were unable to translate any of the strange glowing symbols on the wall.

"Well," Raz half-growled, "Are you gonna help us, or what? We can't read these runes, and they're not going to translate themselves."

"Let me put it in words you might understand," Kalb said, his voice quiet, as if he were commending himself for some clever accomplishment. "Learn to see things as I see them."

Lili shook her head. "Raz, what..?"

"One second," he said, thinking hard. He knew the phrase was familiar, he had heard it somewhere before…

_"In the fridge," the insane guard whispered, half to himself. "There's something that will help you see things like I do."_

_"Oh, sorry… I don't drink. Before noon, I mean…"_

"That's right!" Raz spoke up suddenly, his emerald eyes opening. "Boyd. Boyd told me to look in the fridge..."

"The old, insane Asylum Guard?" Lili asked. "I don't see how he has anything to do with this…"

Raz knelt down on one knee, the index finger of each hand pressed against the corresponding side of his head. He pictured Kalb, the being so immense, crouched low on his armored hunches to avoid the low ceiling… trying to think of the feelings the being might be experiencing…

Suddenly, he wasn't looking out of his own eyes. He was looking through someone else's, someone much taller, whose eyes were veiled behind a T-shaped visor. Raz didn't believe it… he was looking out Kalb's eyes. Eagerly, he turned the being's head, looking at the runes.

They seemed to shift and dance in front of him, and he realized with great excitement that he could actually read them. He was about to turn Kalb's head again, to take in more information, when he was suddenly forced out of Kalb's mind.

Groggily, Raz sat up, back in his own body. Kalb took a step forward, stretching his neck out as far as it could reach. His intimidating faceplate was only inches from Raz's face.

"Very wise, Razputin," Kalb said approvingly. "Tell me what you gathered."

"Tysr is hunting for a 'pure soul'," Raz said slowly, hoping he wouldn't forget anything important. "He needs the one pure soul to power the Bileptum Dial in the BioWeapons Lab. Supposedly, that will allow it to pull you two back into one being. But what Tysr doesn't know is that was not designed to be used in reverse, so it would actually end up killing both of you instead of bringing you new life."

"Yes," Kalb said, after an unpleasant pause.

"There's got to be a way to get rid of Tsyr without harming you, Kalb," Lili suggested, placing a hand on his scaled arm.

At the touch, Kalb looked down surprisedly. "Y…yes. There must be a way. I am glad I have you two to help me find it. But before we do anything else, you must promise me that you will never let Tsyr take you hostage. The method of removing the soul calls an otherworldly pain to attack the body, a pain that I would not wish to fall on either of you."

"We appreciate your concern," Raz said sincerely. "But we were never planning on letting Tsyr catch us. We're going to give him hell, right Lili?"

"With you all the way," she said, clasping Raz's hand.

Both teens cast a glace at Kalb. At first, the being didn't understand what they wanted. Then, it dawned on him, and he uncomfortably stepped forward. With a fast movement, Lili seized his huge, clawed hand and placed it over theirs.

"It's settled then," she said, sounding like a natural leader. "Let's take the fight to Tsyr."

Kalb turned away. _I have done all I could. I have given them hope now. But perhaps it was such vile thing for me to do… when the only thing that can result from the hope is broken promises. For I know there is only one way of defeating Tsyr…_

* * *

Wow, short chapter. Sorry guys, I'm sort of losing control of this fic. I'm going to try and wrap it up soon, to make way for my next one.

So, until the next chapter...


	10. A Plan Gone Wrong

**CHAPTER 10**

Kalb paced slowly through the Reception Area of Whispering Rocks Psychic Summer Camp, his long neck drooping. Each time his right foot made contact with the ground and his muscles pushed his powerful leg forward, he flinched visibly. The metal encasing his thighs, legs, shins, and ankles was slick with a fluid red substance.

His T-shaped visor glowed vibrantly as he turned his neck behind him. His foot was leaving vivid crimson prints in the fresh snow, but he was observing something beyond himself. Two figures crouched far off in the distance, their forms nearly completely cloaked by a thick line of dry, brittle trees.

He stepped on a twig, which snapped loudly. Flinching sharply, he drew back, jerking his neck from side to side with raw energy, as if he was being hunted. When nothing came to attack, he continued his limping pace. Approaching the edge of the frozen pond, he laid down in the snow, slowly relaxing his right leg as he felt the coldness of the snow numb it. His clawed hand broke the thin ice on the surface of the pond, and as he dipped his hand in to scoop up water, he raised his eyes, holding his neck perfectly still and extending his long tongue into the wet palm of his hand.

As he repeated this, his raised eyes beneath his glowing visor detected a shaped darting among the trees. It was there one second, gone the next, like a whisp of black smoke. He turned his head behind him, seeing the figures still following him at a distance, and groaned loudly once.

Tsyr was on him in a flash, scales spraying off his maw, the long tongue extending, spraying spittle everywhere. The beast gave an angry scream and prepared to crush Kalb's chest with his powerful feet, seeing his opponent's injury. However, much to Tsyr's surprise and dismay, Kalb tucked his legs up underneath him a rolled gracefully, sliding away from the blow. Tsyr's foot struck a slippery patch of ice with full force, and it gave a hateful shriek as it toppled over backwards and plunged into the pond in a tangle of limbs.

Writhing to his feet, Tsyr stared hatefully at Kalb, who wiped some of the red fluid off his leg. It was in that moment, as the tangy odor entered Tsyr's nostrils, that he knew he had been tricked. There was no injury at all, but a masterfully feigned limp and thick smears of berry juices.

As Tsyr slowly realized all of this, the second part of the clever ruse was unfolding. Raz and Lili, keyed by Kalb's groan, circled behind the distracted being and readied Pyrokinesis. The creature leapt towards Kalb with its deadly foot claws raked forwards, but in midair he was lit ablaze by Lili and Raz's combined psychic efforts.

Shrieking terribly, Tsyr's momentum was halted and he fell out of the air, the deadly nightmare-inducing gases spewing from his body. Kalb grabbed both Lili and Raz in his huge arms and dragged them out of the way.

Luckily for Tsyr, his fall plunged him into the freezing waters of the pond, dousing the flames almost immediately. Rising from the water, Tsyr attacked again, his four arms spreading wide and rushing forward. Kalb sidestepped nimbly, flinching as his attacker's arms scraped his metal gauntlets.

Raz and Lili both began to concentrate again, preparing another blast on pyrokinesis, but Tsyr had turned from Kalb and dashed at them. Raz broked his concentration and jumped with all his might, putting all the muscle he had gained to the test. He scooped up Lili in mid-leap, feeling his arms scream in protest. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he landed just out of Tsyr's range.

Kalb fought inner turmoil, watching Tsyr chase the two teenagers. He wanted to fling himself forward, but any physical exertion too great could cause a short in his armor and lead to his death. Instead he formed a levitation globe beneath each wing and, gliding skillfully just above the ground, swooped in and caught both Raz and Lili, carrying them far out of the attacking Tsyr's reach once again.

Seeing the cause of his frustration, Tsyr gathered his legs beneath him and sprung, but Kalb cleverly tucked his wings in and spun his body. He scraped dangerously close to the ground, spraying snow everywhere, but he had once again evaded an attack.

Spreading his wings, Kalb said, "I'm going to take flight, so fire aggression down on Tsyr once we are safely above him."

Lili and Raz didn't have to wait long. Channeling their anger, streaking bolts of red energy raced from their foreheads, colliding into Tsyr. The being gave one of his menacing shrieks, but a second barrage collided with his head, and he went down on one knee.

"We're… we're doing it!" Lili cried, encouraged.

Tsyr watched his opponents circle above, his cold, calm mind calculating their every move. His eyes darted from their flying shapes to the thick black trunks of the trees surrounding him. His claws began to flick in and out.

With a triumphant screech, he launched himself close to the nearest tree and struck its base. Kalb spread his wings greatly, halting in midair. At that moment, Tsyr struck another tree with all his strength, and it toppled over. Seeing the vast black shaped approaching, Kalb pumped his wings furiously, but he couldn't evade the tree in time. With a painfully loud crunch it struck him full-on, and his unconscious form plummeted into the ground.

Tsyr approached the still form, his tongue writhing. Slowly, his mouth closed, and his scales grew over the bloody maw. Looking down, he was very pleased with the results of his tactic.

His counterpart Kalb lay crumpled in the snow before him. The rut in the ground he had left behind himself suggested that he slid, and then somersaulted painfully to a stop. Besides the fact that he was out cold and would remain so for quite awhile, he seemed rather intact, except for his chest plate. The bulky metal was cracked, and sparks danced across its surface.

Tsyr kicked Kalb's body to the side disdainfully, eyeing the children underneath. They were more intact than Kalb, suggesting that he had curled his body around them at the last second, taking the brunt of their blow. Lili was fine, unconscious and a little bruised, but that was it. Raz was little worse. Blood trickled from his nose, but he hadn't passed out yet.

Groggily, the green eyes began to focus on Tsyr. Held in their gaze, the creature knew he had found what he had desperately sought. The creature hefted Raz easily, who looked very much like he wanted to struggle, but obviously had no strength left.

The triumphant Tsyr walked away calmly, as if the battle had never happened and the process had occurred without a hitch. Already his wounds had been covered by fresh scales, and by the time dawn spread its fingertips throughout the valley, he would be whole once again.

Their plan against him had failed. His would succeed, and it would be the end of his miserable excuse for a counterpart.


End file.
